


Your Rainbow Will Come Smiling Through

by lovethatwewerein



Series: Seblaine Week 2020 [2]
Category: Glee
Genre: M/M, Mentioned Quinn Fabray, Minor Rachel Berry/Jesse St. James
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-13
Updated: 2020-07-13
Packaged: 2021-03-05 00:40:39
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,984
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25205617
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lovethatwewerein/pseuds/lovethatwewerein
Summary: He leans against the banister for longer than he could guess, watching people walk through the gardens in pairs. He thinks that he can make out Rachel and Jesse but her dress is too dark to be sure.“Are you okay?”He turns around at the words, worried that he might be in trouble for abandoning the party. Prince Sebastian is leaning against the door, a few curious gazes following him as he shuts it behind him when he joins Blaine. He’s dressed better than Blaine could describe, his body filling out his clothes and his hair, perfectly coiffed inside, becoming messier in the wind.———Day 2 - Modern Retellings
Relationships: Blaine Anderson/Sebastian Smythe
Series: Seblaine Week 2020 [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1842061
Comments: 4
Kudos: 50
Collections: Seblaine Week 2020





	Your Rainbow Will Come Smiling Through

**Author's Note:**

> Title from 'A Dream Is A Wish Your Heart Makes' from Cinderella

He’s sat at her bedside when it happens, the slow breathing he’d become so used to fading into nothingness. He almost wishes he’d been anywhere else, possibly out riding with his father or messing around with Cooper, just so he doesn’t have to be the one to watch her disappear from they’re lives. 

He’s only eight, still so full of wonder and optimism, but he knows that she’s dead the instant it happens. This disconnect from her, as though she was no longer a part of his reality, tells him enough that he drops her hand to go and find his father. 

They mourn her, Cooper even finding less time to point out everything he’s doing wrong, and he wishes desperately that he could bring her back. Wishes that he could take her place instead just so he doesn’t have to cry over her anymore. 

His father doesn’t cry in front of them, nor does he cry at the funeral, but Blaine hears him when they’re supposed to be sleeping. He hears him in the kitchen sobbing over his wife’s early exit from the world. Hears the cracks in his voice when he tries to stop the tears whenever Blaine enters the room. He wants to comfort him, wants to tell him that they can cry together, but he just hugs him before going back to bed, curling into Cooper’s body the way he has since the night she passed. 

They learn to get by afterwards, Cooper taking over the duties they used to share. He’s grateful for his brother, glad that he isn’t responsible for continuing the family line, but it also means that he loses touch with the part of himself that’s supposed to mingle with high society. He doesn’t mind it much in the moment. 

It’s just another part of his spirit that belonged to his mother. 

*

HIs father remarries seven years later. He’s fifteen and he hasn’t really bothered to know what’s going on with his family. He doesn’t particularly like his step-mother, doesn’t see the appeal in finding a replacement for a woman he loved. She already has a daughter, Rachel, and she’s pushy. Cooper gets along with her plenty. 

He tries to be polite for the sake of his father, tries to be kind to people that he doesn’t want in his life. It’s easy with Cooper around, taking Rachel to the balls she has to attend, so he does his best. No one expects him to be rude, and he isn’t, but they expect him to care just a little bit more. 

“I want us to get along, Blaine,” Shelby tells him after three months of skirting around each other. Cooper brough Rachel into the village and his father is in a meeting so it’s just them in the house. He wishes he could avoid the whole conversation, but she caught him while he was walking through the gardens and he’s trying. For his father. “Tell me what I can do.”  
He’s not sure what to tell her, how to explain that he feels like she’s replacing the memories of his mother. That she’s becoming a massive part of their lives and that terrifies him. That he wants to like her, desperately in fact, but that he’s not sure whether it would be a betrayal. 

So he tells her none of those things. Instead, he stares at the flowers in the garden, the willow tree he used to sit underneath while his mother regaled him with tales of her childhood. Eventually, Shelby takes the hint, giving him a quick pat on the shoulders before she leaves him alone. 

There’s a part of him that wants to go after her, tell her the truth, but she’s not his mother. They aren’t even close to getting along. So he stays in the gardens until Cooper returns with Rachel, hoping that one day he’ll be able to say what he means. 

*

Rachel begins to talk about Jesse St. James more often at mealtimes, telling her mother that he’s just the nicest boy. He wants to laugh at her description because, although he only met Jesse once, he would never consider him to be nice. He doesn’t, though, because he does want Rachel to be happy, even if just so she moves out faster. He doesn’t hate her but she can be too much. 

“And his standing?” Shelby asks. It’s not a strange question to ask, no mother wants her daughter to enter a courtship where she’s the one better off, but it still rubs him the wrong way. His mother never would’ve cared. His father probably wouldn’t have either. 

“He’s a good friend of the prince.” 

His father hums, well acquainted with the king. Old school friends. Blaine tended to ignore his stories, so much less interesting than those of his mother. “Have you met the prince then, Rachel?” 

She shakes her head, placing her fork down neatly. The way she’s put it down is almost perfect and he admires it. “Prince Sebastian tends to keep to himself whenever I’m around.” 

“Any reason?” he asks. He’s heard rumours about the prince, that he finds comfort in the arms of men instead of women, and hopes that perhaps Rachel knows more. 

“He’s just very busy.” 

That’s all she has to say, the way her shoulders don’t tense as if she’s carrying a secret, for him to believe that she truly doesn’t know. He wishes that she knew more, could tell him where the prince’s inclinations lie, but that could mean telling her about himself and he doesn’t have it in him to do that just yet.  
The conversation moves on to more general things, Cooper’s quest for a wife (he seems especially fond of Miss Quinn Fabray) and Blaine’s studies. He mainly keeps quiet after that, letting the conversation flow between everyone else, but he has questions that they clearly can’t answer. 

*

The invite is heavy in his hands when it arrives, the cursive bold against the ivory card. It makes him halt in the foyer, the words glaring up at him, almost mocking. 

All eligible persons. 

That means Rachel, Cooper and himself. He’s been to the palace once since his mother died and he barely remembers anything. He knows that both Rachel and Cooper have been there more recently, once for an intimate gathering and once with Jesse, and it sets him on edge. 

The prince needs to find a wife, the king had spoken up about it within the last month, and that’s what this ball is for. To, if he were to be mean about it, sell him to the highest bidder. He does hope that Sebastian gets some choice in his future, that he’ll get to choose his wife. No one deserves to have love stripped from them. Not even a future leader of their country. 

“What’s that, squirt?” 

He drops the invitation at the sound of Cooper’s voice, his heart rate picking up at the surprise. HIs brother picks it up, reading the entire thing out loud. 

“You know you have to go to this as well, right?” 

“I know that,” he nods, even though he really wishes he didn’t. “It’s not like it’s going to matter in the end anyway.” 

“That’s not the point,” Cooper says, grabbing Blaine in a tight hug. He rubs his hands through his hair, loosening the curls trapped in gel. “You may even make a new friend.” 

“I have friends.” 

“Blaine, musical instruments don’t count.” 

“That’s not what I was talking about.” He insists, trying to stop the blush he knows is working up his cheeks. Cooper has a point, the time Blaine spends making music so much more than the time spent with actual people, but that doesn’t mean it doesn’t hurt. 

“You’ll have a good time.” 

“You don’t know that,” he grumbles, walking away from Cooper. 

His brother laughs, “Sure, squirt, sure.” 

He leaves the invitation on Rachel’s desk, wary of invading her privacy but not willing to talk to anyone this evening. It’s not that he hates meeting new people, he’s actually excellent at it, but he’s not used to all the things that go with befriending high society anymore. 

Dancing was something he did with his mother, letting her guide him through a traditional waltz every saturday afternoon until she was too frail to stand. The movements were still ingrained in his mind but, after so many years of not doing them, he felt like he was betraying her in some small way. 

It would make sense to practice once more, to ensure he still knew what direction he should turn, just so he wouldn’t embarrass himself. That would mean asking Rachel or Shelby for help, something he wasn’t entirely sure he could bring himself to do. 

Instead, he sits at the piano, fingers trailing over the case with a sense of familiarity. The melody is one he’s played so many times, one that his mother taught him when she was still at her best, and the comfort of it wrapped around his body. His mind is free, not worried about the ball or Shelby or anything else that tightened his muscles, and he’s calm for the first time in days. 

“That was beautiful, Blaine,” Shelby says from the doorway when he’s finished, the final notes floating into the hallway, gone forever. She’s smiling softly, her gaze focused only on him, and he can’t find it in himself to hate her for listening. “Do you sing as well?” 

“Sometimes.” 

“I sang as a teenager,” she explains, sitting down on one of the other stools in the room. It’s the first time he’s seen anyone else in this room and she seems to fit in almost as much as he does. “It was one of the only times I truly felt at peace.” 

He chuckles quietly, the words so familiar. He knew what she meant and, for the first time, thought about how much they might have in common. “Do you not anymore?” 

“After my grandfather died, he was the first person to really care that I enjoyed singing, I lost my passion for it.” 

“I’m sorry.” he interrupts, because he knows exactly how she feels. 

She smiles, the light in her eyes dimming just so. “I may not sing anymore but I started to feel like myself again after I met your father. I wanted us to get along before the wedding, Blaine, and I still want that. I see a lot of the person I used to be in you -”

“Surely Rachel’s more like you than I am.” 

“She’s actually very much like her father,” Shelby says. “When I met you I thought that I would finally have someone that I could teach not to make the mistakes I did. You just never gave me the chance.” 

“I’m sorry.” He bows his head, ashamed that he never even gave her a chance at all. “I was being unreasonable.” 

“I don’t blame you, Blaine. I understand that you felt like you would be betraying your mother. That was never my intent.” 

“I know. I just felt like I was the only one that wasn’t forgetting all about her,” he shakes his head, scratching at the back of his neck. “My father loved you and Cooper liked you well enough. It was just this thought that eventually she’d fade away.” 

Shelby joins him on the piano stool then, pulling him close to her body. It’s strange but he enjoys it more than he ever thought he would. “That could never happen. Your father and brother loved your mother dearly and that could never fade away.” 

He nods into her shoulder, just sitting there. This was the closest they’d ever been, the distance that existed between them for so long disappearing. It was nice, when he thought about it, to let his guard down around his step-mother for the first time. Maybe he’d been missing out.

*

The day of the ball comes around far too soon for Blaine’s liking, Rachel taking most of the day to get ready. He knows that she wants to look her best, understands that it’s for Jesse instead of the prince, but he’s the only one that thinks nine hours is too much time. 

To settle his nerves, he spends the entire morning playing the piano, losing himself in the sound it makes. It’s like being truly at home. He wishes that’s where he could be when night falls. 

Shelby offers to stay with him, to accompany him with her voice or another instrument or just be there. He turns her down. Even though they’re in a better place, he still doesn’t want her invading his time with music. 

Cooper is the first of them to be ready, dashing as always. His father says it’s the Anderson charm, that Cooper got all of the genes that draw the ladies in, and Blaine can’t help but think that some of his joking might be true. He knows that, even if women loved him he would turn them down, but it still hurts when he’s overshadowed for his more handsome brother. 

Rachel looks lovely when she finally joins them downstairs, her dress a dark blue that he mistakes for black at first glance. She’s possibly more beautiful than he’s ever seen her and he’s sure that Jesse will think so too. 

They’d decided that Cooper would be the one to enter with Rachel on his arm, that it was so much easier for him because he was taller and, well, straight. If they weren’t siblings (it didn’t matter that it was just through marriage), he would think they were a dream couple. He’s almost certain that some of the other people at the ball think so when they walk in. 

Jesse finds them quickly, taking Rachel from Cooper with a muttered thanks and quick bow. After that, he’s left on his own at the edge of the room. There are too many people and too many windows and everyone just looks too much like they’re having a good time. It’s silly, he knows, but he needs air. 

Prince Sebastian is dancing with Quinn Fabray, her pale pink dress barely grazing the marble beneath her feet, and Cooper is pouting off to the side. He’s waiting for the moment she’s free, still hopeful that he can persuade her to give him a chance. Blaine wants his brother to be happy, so he doesn’t bother telling him that it may be a lost cause. 

There’s a balcony off to the side, an escape from the dozens of people in fancy clothes dancing inside, that he makes his way toward. It’s chilly outside, the light breeze hitting his neck and making him shiver slightly, but it’s welcome compared to the chatter he left behind. 

He leans against the banister for longer than he could guess, watching people walk through the gardens in pairs. He thinks that he can make out Rachel and Jesse but her dress is too dark to be sure. 

“Are you okay?” 

He turns around at the words, worried that he might be in trouble for abandoning the party. Prince Sebastian is leaning against the door, a few curious gazes following him as he shuts it behind him when he joins Blaine. He’s dressed better than Blaine could describe, his body filling out his clothes and his hair, perfectly coiffed inside, becoming messier in the wind. 

He’s smiling, green eyes bright and Blaine thinks that he may be able to hear his heart beat. 

“I don’t think we’ve met,” Sebastian says, extending his hand out to shake. Blaine takes it, trying to ignore the warmth of his palm and the light stroke of his fingertips against his wrist. “Sebastian Smythe.” 

“Blaine Anderson,” he responds, his breathing becoming more shallow the longer Sebastian kept looking at him. “It’s a pleasure to meet you.” 

He leans against the balcony again, swallowing deeply when Sebastian copies his actions. He can’t get his hopes up, the prince is looking for a wife, but he’s tingly inside and he doesn’t really want to leave this moment behind. 

“How come I haven’t seen you around before?” Sebastian asks, leaning closer to Blaine. His cologne is a blend of mint and cedar and something he can’t quite identify. “I feel like I’d remember an ass like that.” 

He blushes deep, a choked noise making its way out of his mouth, because that’s not what he expects from anyone in the royal family, let alone the prince looking for a life. “That’s… That’s not...” 

“Don’t hurt yourself, Blaine. It was a compliment.” 

Blaine laughs since he’s enjoying himself. Maybe it’s because he doesn’t know Sebastian or maybe it’s because it’s the first time he’s been complimented in a while, but he’s not too embarrassed over the comment. 

“Seriously, though,” Sebastian says, smirking at the blush Blaine knows is still clear on his cheeks. “How come I’ve never met you before?” 

“I’ve not been big on meeting people lately.” It’s not the full story but he doesn’t want to tell a handsome guy that he hasn’t really left his house since his mom died over eight years ago. Sebastian nods, as if he understands. Blaine’s sure that he has no idea. 

“It’s a shame. I would’ve loved to meet you earlier,” he bumps Blaine’s shoulder with his own, leaving the spot he touched burning despite the layers of clothes. “The bashful schoolboy thing is super hot.” 

“You’re just saying that.” 

“So I can’t tell people the truth anymore.” 

“Not if it turns their skin red from blushing.” he laughs, still smiling so Sebastian knows he doesn’t mean it. 

They stay like that for a solid hour, the chill slowly seeping deep into his bones. He wants to go back inside, wants to warm up before he catches his death, but he’s enjoying himself with Sebastian and that’s enough to keep him on the balcony. 

“It’s getting cold,” Sebastian’s grinning and it sets Blaine on edge. That smile could mean something incredible but it could also mean something that would haunt him for a long time. He thinks he might be willing to take the risk. “Do you wanna go back inside?” 

“It’s a shame we can’t go in without everyone seeing us and trying to steal you away.” he jokes. Sebastian seems to go silent, every thought he’s having flickering over his face, and Blaine wishes he didn’t have to guess what the other was thinking. 

“Maybe there is a way.” Sebastian’s eyes are shining with mischief and Blaine’s almost willing to do anything just to spend more time looking into them. “Are you willing to take a little risk?” 

He has to think for a second, consider whether it’s worth it. It might be, just for the night, and that’s enough for him to agree. 

Sebastian leads him to the edge of the balcony, the vines climbing up the side of the building seemingly sturdy enough to handle his weight. Blaine’s heart is in his mouth, a fear for Seabstian and himself causing adrenaline to race through his veins, but Sebastian is still smiling as he makes his way down the vines.

“You coming?” 

And maybe he’s lost in the moment, because he responds, “Maybe later.” Sebastian laughs, and Blaine swears it might be the best sound he’s heard in years. 

They end up on the floor eventually - actually Sebastian reaches the floor, tells Blaine to jump, and catches him in his arms. It’s romantic and he’s almost prepared to risk everything just for a kiss. He doesn’t go for it, though, and, when Sebastian wraps his fingers around Blaine’s wrist and tugs him around the corner so they’re out of sight. 

It’s the first time he’s felt truly alive since his mother died, climbing down the side of the palace and letting himself enjoy the presence of a good-looking boy, so he doesn’t feel too guilty when Sebastian drags him into a nearby garden. 

“I’m having a lot more fun than I thought I would.” he admits to Sebastian when they sit down. He has no idea which way they came in or how they plan to get out, the garden is like a maze that he genuinely can’t figure out, but he’s got Sebastian to lead him the right way. 

“Anything to do with me?” 

“Everything to do with you.” 

Sebastian smiles, pulling Blaine into his chest. It’s new and exciting and he can feel the racing of the other’s heart, but he can’t bring himself to care that Sebastian’s supposed to be looking for a wife inside. 

He can’t hear anyone talking, can just see the lights from the palace, and he feels like he’s playing the piano. Calm and focused. Like there’s nothing wrong with the world. He’s still cold, the wind still making its way through his clothing, but there’s also the heat of Sebastian burrowing under his skin and that makes it just bearable. 

“What did you mean earlier when you said you’ve not been big on meeting people lately?” Sebastian asks after twenty minutes, his hand playing with some of the loose curls at the nape of Blaine’s neck. 

He tenses, trying not to let the memories of his mother take him away from this moment. He probably won’t get another chance to speak about her for a while, so he should take it while he still can. 

“My mother died when I was eight,” he whispers, the only sign Sebastian heard him a brief halt in his movements. He breathes in deeply, hoping that the smell of Sebastian’s cologne will keep him grounded enough. “I was really close to her and it hit me really hard when it happened. My dad and Cooper moved on quick enough, growing from the experience, meeting new people. I just kind of got… stuck, I guess.” 

“I bet she was a really great woman.” Sebastian mumbles in his ear, prompting a light shiver to travel up his spine. He nods, leaning further into the other boy, grateful that he’s willing to sit and listen. 

“She was the best person I’ve ever met. When she wasn’t around anymore to help me grow up, to teach me how to dance or bake or anything most mothers do, I think I just lost a part of who I was.”

“You know you’re a whole person, right?” 

“I know,” he says, letting his eyes wander over Sebastian’s face. “But I still feel like she took a part of me with her when she died.” 

Sebastian squeezes an arm around his waist. “Did you say that she taught you how to dance?” 

“She taught me to waltz.” 

“Do you wanna dance with me, Anderson?” Sebastian asks, standing up with an arm out. Blaine’s worries for a second, about how this is a betrayal to his mother, but then he recalls how fondly she looked at the activity, how much she wanted him to have fun when they danced. 

So he lets Sebastian pull him close and sway to music neither of them can hear. He wants to hum, wants to create a tune just for them, but he’s not sure he could make anything to reflect how he’s feeling inside. 

“You alright?” The words are soft in his ear, slightly ticklish against the soft skin there. He nods into Sebastian’s neck, basking in the fact that this is just for them, just for him.

There’s always a part of him that wonders how his mother would react to him being gay, to how hopeless he was when it came to love. He’s sure she would love him regardless, would do everything she could to make sure he was happy, and it warms him to the tips of his toes. 

“Blaine?” He lets his eyes turn to Sebastian’s face, the mint still lingering on his breath welcoming on his own. His green eyes are searching, and Blaine really hopes he’s going to ask what he wants him to. “Can I kiss you?” 

Instead of answering, he stretches up on his tiptoes, circling his arms around the taller’s neck. Their lips brush and he knows that he wants this more than anything. Even if it’s just for the night. Sebastian pushes them forward, the kiss deepening. He’s wrapping his fingers in the hair at the back of his neck, the strands soft between his fingertips, and Blaine is completely lost for the first time in years. 

Nothing else exists except Sebastian, except the feel of his hands around Blaine’s waist and the taste of him on his lips. It’s new and exciting and he’d happily give up everything he owns for it to last longer than it can. 

He pulls back first, his breathing shallow and his stomach in knots. They’ve wasted the evening away, Sebastian choosing to spend the time he should be using to find a wife to entertain Blaine. He can’t help but feel guilty for stealing all his attention, even if he hadn’t meant to, and that’s why he fleas. 

He almost gets lost in the maze of bushes they were in, all of them taller than him and really intimidating. He can just about ignore Sebastian yelling his name as he makes his way across the sprawling land. 

*

He’s sat in the music room a week later, the song he’s trying to play not sounding right no matter how hard he tried. Nothing had sounded right since he left Sebastian alone in the gardens, not the piano or the violin or the guitar. The guilt had been eating him up inside, turning him around, and he wanted to apologise. 

Sebastian hadn’t deserved his panic, hadn’t deserved to be abandoned at his own party when Blaine lost himself too far in the moment. But Blaine was a coward and didn’t have it in him to make his way back to the palace. 

He glanced up when someone knocked at the door, not surprised that Shelby was the only one willing to come and check up on him. “You busy, Blaine?” 

“I don’t think so.” 

“There’s a visitor here to see you.” 

He raises an eyebrow at that. No one ever came to see him - Jesse often visited Rachel and, recently, Quinn had swung by to see Cooper - so he wasn’t sure whether she was kidding or not. Shelby moves out of the way of the door, letting their guest walk through. 

Sebastian isn’t as well dressed as he was the week before, not dressed for a ball in the slightest. He’s still wearing smart clothes, smarter than Blaine’s polo and chinos at least, and somehow that’s more intimidating than anything else. 

“Hey.” 

“Hey,” He greets, nodding to Shelby that she can leave. He gestures for Sebastian to come in, shifting over on the piano stool to make room. “What are you doing here?” 

“I’ve been doing a lot of thinking this past week,” Sebastian says, taking the seat beside him but refusing to meet his eyes. “About the ball and everyone I’ve met since that wants to marry me-” 

“That’s great,” he interrupts, the reality that Sebastian was still supposed to marry cutting deep. “I don’t see why you’re here though.” 

“I don’t want to marry any of them, Blaine. They’re boring and needy and, frankly, some of them terrify me.” 

“I’m sorry?” 

Sebastian shakes his head, the light from above casting a shadow across his jaw that Blaine wants to follow with his fingers. “That night with you, just having fun, made me sure that that’s not what I want. I don’t want someone with me for the prestige or the money or anything that any of them want.”

“So you aren’t getting married?” None of this makes sense. 

The other boy finally meets his gaze, his eyes serious compared to every other time Blaine’s seen them. “That depends. I met a really great guy a week ago, you might know him actually, that I would marry in a heartbeat if he let me.” 

His heart squeezes, skips a beat and quickens all at once. He’s imagining it, surely, because Sebastian couldn’t want him after just a few hours. No one wanted Blaine for more than a few hours. 

“Do you think he’d go for it?” 

“I think you need to ask him first.” He’s not sure why he’s encouraging Sebastian, why he’s even letting himself entertain the idea, but he kind of wants a direct answer. That’s why he’s surprised when Sebastian lowers himself onto the floor, the gravity of what’s happening finally pulling him down, taking Blaine’s hand as he kneels. 

“Blaine Anderson, I know that we only met a week ago and that we don’t really know each other,” his hand is shaking and he’s sure Sebastian is the only thing keeping him from losing his mind. “But I had a really great time and, although I really want to marry you, I’m willing to wait as long as you need before that happens.” 

His heart is beating almost louder than Sebastian’s words in his ear, the knowledge that he’s just been proposed to overloading every conscious thought he has. 

“Blaine?” 

And just like that, the earnest way Sebastian was looking at him, biting his lip with a nervousness he’d never think to associate with the prince, he has his answer. Being with Sebastian was the first time he’d felt whole since watching his mother take her last breath and, as unsure as he was about most things, he wasn’t going to give that up. 

“Okay,” he whispers, struggling to hear his own words over the rushing of blood through his veins. “I’ll need some time but, yes, I will marry you.” 

Sebastian’s blinding grin, one Blaine hasn’t had the pleasure of seeing until now, is enough of a thanks to make him do it all over again.

**Author's Note:**

> I'm at love-that-we-were-in on tumblr


End file.
